Renato Schifani praises emergency response to Etna eruption at Catania airport

The July 7 eruption of Mount Etna sent ash clouds that forced the temporary closure of Catania‑Fontanarossa airport for more than 30 hours, disrupting flights and diverting about 40,000 passengers. Regional President Renato Schifani lauded the “exceptional organisational effort” of Sicily’s civil protection, led by Salvo Cocina, which coordinated a massive mobility plan involving hundreds of shuttle buses and special trains, and deployed roughly 100 volunteers at the airports of Palermo, Trapani and Catania. Volunteers distributed around 4,000 bottled waters, set up gazebos and provided 50 stretchers for stranded travelers, especially children and vulnerable persons. Schifani thanked the volunteers and the airport operators Gesap, Airgest and SAC for their swift action. Satellite monitoring by the European Copernicus Sentinel‑5P/TROPOMI system tracked the ash plume, which spread across the Mediterranean, affecting the skies over Libya, Tunisia, Algeria and Egypt.